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NFL Roundup: Bush sparks Miami's win vs. Oakland
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The Dolphins' Reggie Bush runs for one of his two TDs Sunday.
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Reggie Bush happily hurled the ball into the stands as he skipped across the end zone grass, then matched the crowd's cheers with a scream of his own.
The Miami Dolphins had a home opener worth celebrating for a change.
Bush ran for 172 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dolphins won a home opener for the first time since 2005 by beating the Oakland Raiders, 35-13, Sunday at Sun Life Stadium.
Ryan Tannehill threw his first NFL touchdown pass, ran for another and avoided any turnovers after tossing three interceptions in his pro debut a week earlier.
The Dolphins improved to 1-1, and Joe Philbin earned a sideline drenching for his first victory as a head coach. The Raiders, under new coach Dennis Allen, are 0-2 for the first time since 2007.
"It was nothing fancy, nothing magical," Philbin said. "Our identity right now is we've got to run the ball effectively and stop the run."
Miami did both, outgaining Oakland on the ground, 259-23.
Bush broke four tackles on a 23-yard touchdown run that put the Dolphins ahead to stay in the third quarter. After they forced a punt, Bush struck again, this time on a 65-yard scoring run.
Far from home on a sweltering afternoon, the Raiders wilted down the stretch. Miami employed a no-huddle approach most of the game and pulled away in the final 20 minutes by mounting touchdown drives of 80, 80 and 75 yards.
"We felt our tempo would be a key," Bush said. "We pressed that tempo and felt like we wore them down and just continued to pound the ball."
Carson Palmer threw for 373 yards, but the Raiders were plagued by poor field position and managed only one touchdown -- when backup running back Mike Goodson took a swing pass and turned it into a 64-yard score.
Darren McFadden was held to 22 yards rushing and 19 receiving. The Raiders were only 1 for 12 on third-down conversions, and they had no takeaways.
"We haven't helped our offense out with field position," Allen said. "We need to take the ball away and create short fields. We can't go 80 yards on every drive."
Tannehill went 18 for 30 for 200 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Fasano.. "We were able to establish the running game," Tannehill said. "It takes a lot of pressure off."
• Giants 41, Buccaneers 34: Eli Manning threw for 510 yards, and Andre Brown's 2-yard run with 31 seconds left lifted New York from a 14-point deficit to a wild victory against visiting Tampa Bay. Manning was the first-half goat and the second-half star in the second-best passing day in team history. His three first-half interceptions staked the Buccaneers (1-1) to an 11-point lead, and his monster second half helped the Super Bowl champions avoid a dreaded 0-2 start.
• Rams 31, Redskins 28: Sam Bradford threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns and Danny Amendola caught 16 passes for 160 yards in rallying host St. Louis (1-1) to a win against Robert Griffin III and Washington. Griffin ran for two touchdowns and passed for a third for the Redskins (1-1).
• Colts 23, Vikings 20: Adam Vinatieri made a 53-yard field goal with eight seconds left to give Andrew Luck and Indianapolis (1-1) a victory against visiting Minnesota (1-1). Luck and new Colts coach Chuck Pagano picked up their first career victories in their home opener.
• Panthers 35, Saints 27: Cam Newton threw for 253 yards and ran for a career-high 71 yards as Carolina defeated visiting New Orleans to hand the Saints their first 0-2 start since 2007. The Panthers (1-1) ran for 219 yards and Newton, DeAngelo Williams and Mike Tolbert all scored on short touchdown runs.
• Bills 35, Chiefs 17: C.J. Spiller scored twice and had 123 yards rushing to spark Buffalo's (1-1) rout against Kansas City (0-2) at Orchard Park. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw two touchdown passes and Leodis McKelvin scored on an 88-yard punt return -- the second longest in team history -- in the Bills' home opener.
• Texans 27, Jaguars 7: Arian Foster ran for 110 yards and a touchdown and Ben Tate added 74 yards and two scores as Houston dominated from the opening for the win in Jacksonville. The Texans improved to 2-0 for the third consecutive season.
• Seahawks 27, Cowboys 7: Marshawn Lynch ran for 122 yards and a 3-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter and Seattle's special teams came up with two huge first-quarter plays that led to 10 points, as the Seahawks (1-1) beat visiting Dallas (1-1).
• Chargers 38, Titans 10: Tight end Dante Rosario had three touchdown catches for the first time in his career and San Diego's defense harassed Jake Locker as the Chargers (2-0) beat visiting Tennessee (0-2).
First Published September 17, 2012 12:00 am
